Samsung Launches iOS beta for Gear S2

Samsung had recently announced that they had plans for iPhone users to be able to use their fitness trackers and smartwatches. Whilst this may have seemed like a laughable idea due to the on-going rivalry between Samsung and Apple, it seems that this may actually become a reality.

It was confirmed that Samsung had plans to introduce the Samsung Gear S2 smartwatch to iOS and now it seems that we are one step closer. Samsung has launched a new beta testing program for a Gear iOS app. This will run from Wednesday, August 24 to Monday, September 19, could this mean we could expect to see the smartwatch introduced to iOS in late-September?

The beta is currently limited to users in South Korea which means unfortunately users from other countries will not be able to test the app. Users are required to have Apple ID and an iPhone 5 or later running iOS 8.4 or later to be able to test out the beta.

Although it has not been confirmed by Samsung officially, it seems that the day Samsung smartwatches work with iOS is getting closer. Samsung is likely going to use the beta program to test for bugs and work on improving the experience before rolling out the app to the masses.

It will be interesting to see how Apple reacts to this. The majority of the wearable market belongs to Fitbit, but both Apple and Samsung have been trying to compete to take a slice of the market. Apple has only one smartwatch in their portfolio. People seemed to have a very positive reaction to the Apple Watch with the smartwatch selling a decent amount of units. However, with the introduction of more compatible smartwatches to iOS could Apple be in trouble?

In comparison to Apple, Samsung on the other hand have not been as successful with their wearables Although they have a larger range of devices, they haven’t made the impact they were hoping. So could expanding to iOS be the change they need in order to sell more wearables?

It will be interesting to see how iOS users react to the Samsung smartwatch working with iPhones – especially since many users have been patiently waiting for an update to Apple’s own smartwatch for more features.